The invention relates to an apparatus, a system and a method for conditioning and preserving an organ from a donor.
Transplantation of an organ from a donor to a patient involves three stages, 1) the donor operation, 2) the preservation and transportation of the organ and 3) the implantation in the patient.
In most cases the donor is a deceased human, but some donor organs (for instance one of the kidneys) or parts thereof are sometimes donated by living humans.
In the common preservation procedure, known as “static cold storage” (CS), after the initial wash out with preservation liquid, the organ is packed sterile in a bag filled with preservation liquid, which in turn is placed in a bag with cold saline to prevent direct contact with ice in the box in which the packed organ is stored for transport. This bag is in turn placed in a third bag for sturdiness and to avoid a disturbance of sterile conditions and is finally stored in the cooling box with the melting ice.
A drawback of this procedure is the possibility of organ decay due to e.g. a lack of perfusion that enables the delivery of oxygen and the removal of waste products, an unusual position of the organ, or tissue injury due to (too) direct heat exchange with ice.
In international patent application WO2005/009125, a portable preservation apparatus is described that allows continuous perfusion of an organ and includes a pulsating pump system integrated in a cooling box with a cold oxygenated preservation liquid (4° C.). Besides delivery of oxygen to the organ, the cold oxygenated preservation liquid also provides for cooling of the organ, administration of nutritients and removal of waste products. An organ chamber intended to cooperate with such a device has to meet extra demands concerning structure and connections, while still complying with requirements of sterile handling and ease-of-use. The organ is transported in a bag filled with preservation liquid in which the organ has been placed immediately after explantation from the deceased donor and canulas are connected to the organ.
In international patent application WO2004/089235, an apparatus for transport and storage of an organ is described, which includes a cassette for carrying the organ and a volume of the perfusion liquid. The cassette is provided with tubing for connection to an organ and/or to remove medical liquid from the organ container, and a connection device(s) for connecting the tubing to tubing of a perfusion apparatus, a transporter or a diagnostic device.